Visiting International Students Tell Us What They Love About the Zicklin School

Meet foreign students Sarina Feldmann, Riyad Khaida, and Minju Kwak, and learn their surprising opinions about New York, America, and the Zicklin School of Business.

Sarina Feldmann

Where are you from? Zurich, Switzerland

Home university: Zurich University of Applied Sciences

What are you studying? Graduate courses in banking and finance

Where are you staying? A long-term Airbnb rental in Gramercy Park

Why Zicklin: “I wanted to be in New York. I chose Zicklin because it’s in New York and the exchange program here fits with my program in Zurich.”

Favorite class: “I really like Leading and Managing People, with Shanique Brown. The content is interesting and I like how she runs the class.”

Cultural differences: “Grading is completely different here. In Switzerland, we rarely have homework assignments, and 100 percent of our grade is based on the final exam. Here we have much more reading and assignments throughout the semester. Also, Switzerland is a neutral country, so professors aren’t allowed to express their political opinions at all. Here, professors are much freer with their opinions.”

Top cultural experiences: “I volunteered at the New York City Marathon with the Baruch International Student Service Center and it was fun to see some of my friends in the race. I also highly recommend line dancing on Tuesday nights at Common Country, just around the corner on Third Avenue.”

What’s a fun fact about you that few people would know? “My great-grandfather immigrated to New York from France and worked in the diamond district. His son, my grandfather, was born here but went to France to study, met my grandmother, and settled in Switzerland. I have American relatives in upstate New York who I visit frequently.”

Riyad Khaida

Where are you from? Bordeaux, France

Home university: INSEEC School of Business and Economics, Bordeaux (“I’m in a semester-long program for students from my home university created by Zicklin’s Office of Executive Programs.”)

What are you studying? International business and management

Where are you staying? On 44th Street near Times Square.

Why Zicklin: “I wanted to study in the U.S. to improve my English, and when my friends and I did some research we saw that Baruch and Zicklin are well known in New York as a great school with great programs. Also, I was especially interested in the sustainable element of the courses here.”

Favorite class: “Sustainable Economics and Business Practices, with Diana Amoa. She’s really passionate about what she does. I feel that when she talks, she really loves what she’s doing. When we do exercises in class, everyone participates, even the shy people, which is great.”

Cultural differences: “The way professors teach and speak here makes me feel like they care about us, like we’re family. France is much more formal. In France you speak a certain way with your teachers that you wouldn’t speak here.”

Top cultural experience: “Drinking coffee, believe it or not. Here my friends and I have coffee before class, during the break, after class, and so on. Americans drink a lot of coffee! I drink maybe ten times as much coffee here as I did back home. In France I would drink one espresso per day and that’s it.”

What’s a fun fact about you that few people would know? “I’m a retail manager for a ZARA store in France. That’s where I got this coat. I sometimes feel overdressed here—in France, we dress chic every day, but here people are much more casual.”

Minju Kwak

Where are you from? Daejon, South Korea

Home university: Yonsei University in Seoul

What are you studying? Finance and risk management

Where are you staying? On 32nd Street, in the heart of Koreatown.

Why Zicklin: “I always had a dream of living in New York. I also have an uncle who graduated from the Zicklin School and he told me how great the education was. Most of my professors are businesspeople, so they provide practical advice about the business world. But I think the location is the biggest advantage, because your campus isn’t just the Newman Vertical Campus—it’s all of New York City.”

Favorite class: “International Economics and Finance, with Jonathan Gold. He opened every class with a review of the day’s financial news and I was really able to develop my perspective on the financial market. I was amazed at how passionate he was.”

Cultural differences: “I was surprised by how much students express their opinions in class here. In Korea, students tend to be shy about answering professors’ questions and talking about their thoughts and feelings, but students at Baruch are very confident about speaking out and aren’t afraid of other people’s judgments.”

Top cultural experience: “I go to Carnegie Hall at least once a week to hear orchestral performances. Back home I didn’t like classical music—maybe because my brother played the clarinet and I got sick of hearing him practice—but ever since a friend took me to Carnegie Hall to hear a performance, I’ve been obsessed.”

What’s a fun fact about you that few people would know? “I used to play the gayageum, which is a traditional Korean stringed instrument—a 12-stringed zither.”

To learn more about study abroad opportunities at Zicklin and Baruch, click here.

Categories: Faculty, Student News